Chapter 7 – The Electoral Process

Election Process

In the United States, the election process occurs in two steps:

1. Nomination, in which the field of candidates is narrowed

2. General election, the regularly scheduled election where voters make the final choice of officeholder

Nominations

Four Ways to Nominate

• 1. Self-Announcement – A person who wants to run for office announces their candidacy (usually found in small towns/rural areas)

Four Ways to Nominate

• 1. The Caucus – Originally a private meeting of local bigwigs, the caucus as a nominating device fell out of favor in the 1820s.

Four Ways to Nominate

• The Convention – Considered more democratic than the caucus, convention delegates were selected to represent the people’s wishes. Party bosses soon found ways to manipulate the system, however, and the convention system was on its way out by the early 1900s.

Four Ways to Nominate

Direct Primary • Closed Primary – Only registered party members

may vote• Open Primary – Any qualified voter may take

part

Getting Elected

• The road to the White House consists of 2 separate races– Primary elections and caucuses leading to party

nomination– The general election

• Each requires a different strategy

Getting Elected

• Primaries – appeal to party activists and the more ideologically motivated primary voters in key states

• General election – appeal to the less partisan, more ideologically moderate general election voters

Types of Primaries

The Administration of Elections

Elections are primarily regulated by State law, but there are some overreaching federal regulations.

The Administration of ElectionsCongress• Congress has the power to set the time, place,

and manner of congressional and presidential elections.

• Congress has chosen the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of every even-numbered year for congressional elections, with the presidential election being held the same day every fourth year.

The Administration of ElectionsStates• States determine the details of the election of

thousands of State and local officials.• Most States provide for absentee voting, for

voters who are unable to get to their regular polling places on election day. Most States have started to allow voting a few days before election day to increase voter participation.

Precincts and Polling Places

• A precinct is a voting district• A polling place is where the people

who live in a precinct go to vote

Casting the Ballot

• Voting was initially done orally• In the late 1800s, ballot reforms

cleaned up ballot fraud by supplying standardized, accurate ballots and mandating that voting be secret

Campaign Spending

• It takes money to be elected!– Average winner of the Senate spent $8 Million in

2000– Average winner of the House spent $900,000 in

2000– Over $600 Million was spent in the Presidential race

of 2000

Campaign Spending

Sources of Funding

• Small contributors• Wealthy supporters• Candidates• Temporary fund-raising organizations• Nonparty groups such as PACs (Political Action

Committees)• Government subsidies

Federal Election Commission (FEC)

Administers all federal law dealing with campaign finance:

• the timely disclosure of campaign finance information

• limits on campaign contributions• limits on campaign expenditures• provisions for public funding of presidential

campaigns

Political Action Committees (PAC)

• Political Arms of special–interest groups– Business, labor, professional, cause, and other

organizations

Loopholes in the Law• Soft money — money given to State and local party

organizations for “party-building activities” that is filtered to presidential or congressional campaigns. $500 million was given to campaigns in this way in 2000.

• Independent campaign spending — a person unrelated and unconnected to a candidate or party can spend as much money as they want to benefit or work against candidates.

• Issue ads — take a stand on certain issues in order to criticize or support a certain candidate without actually mentioning that person’s name.

QUIZ

• Get out a sheet of paper and write your name at

the top!!!

1. What are the 2 steps of the election process in the United States?

2. What are the 4 ways to nominate candidates?3. Who has the power to set the time, place, and

manner of elections?4. What does the Federal Election Commission

do?5. What are Political Action Committees?